Attacks on Israeli Civilians by Palestinians

13 June, 2006: Firing Qassam rockets at a civilian population

13 June 2006

Over the past weeks, Palestinian groups in the Gaza Strip have intensified the Qassam rocket-fire at Israeli population centers.

The Palestinian organizations responsible for the rocket-fire state openly that one of their aims is to kill Israeli civilians. Deliberate attacks on civilians are both immoral and illegal. The willful killing of civilians is classified as a grave breach in the Fourth Geneva Convention and as a war crime that is unjustifiable under any circumstances. Furthermore, Qassam rockets are themselves illegal, even when aimed at military objects, because the rockets are so imprecise, and thus endanger civilians situated in the area in which the rockets are fired or where they land. Therefore, the persons involved in firing the rockets violate the requirements of distinction and proportionality, which are fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.

To aggravate matters, many of the rockets are fired from, or near, areas in which civilians live. International humanitarian law prohibits attacks from inside or near the homes of civilians, and from using civilians as human shields. IHL's objective is to reduce to a minimum injury to civilians during an anticipated military response by the other side. The Palestinian organizations that carry out the attacks against Israel from within or near a populated area breach this rule; in doing so, the organizations show their indifference to the loss of Israeli and Palestinian lives.

The Palestinian Authority has the duty to prevent attacks against Israeli civilians. In failing to take action to cease the rocket fire from being launched near civilian homes, the PA also breaches its duty to protect its own civilians who are not taking part in the hostilities.

The firing of Qassam rockets is illegal, and Israel has the right, and even the obligation, to protect its citizens from the attacks. However, in doing so, it must comply with international humanitarian law. The army is not permitted to consider the entire general area from which the rockets were fired as one target-area. The laws of war require the sides to direct their attacks only against specific military objects, to take cautionary measures to prevent injury to civilians, and to refrain from acts that are likely to cause incidental loss of civilian lives, when the loss is excessive in relation to the military advantage anticipated.

The Palestinian Authority must do everything it can to cease the Qassam rocket fire, and the Palestinian organizations must cease attacks aimed at civilians.

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The Gaza Strip

Israel-based civil society and human rights organizations call for a ceasefire

We, the undersigned Israel-based civil society and human rights organizations, call for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and demand the immediate release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip. An immediate ceasefire will prevent further loss of civilian lives and facilitate access to vital aid for Gaza to address the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe there.In more than 120 days of war in Gaza, following Hamas’s egregious attack on October 7 which killed some 1,200 Israelis and internationals, we have witnessed Israeli bombardments and siege policy causing unfathomable death and destruction in the Gaza Strip.According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, some 27,000 people have been killed, over 66,000 people have been injured, and thousands more are still buried under the rubble. The healthcare system has been almost totally decimated by military assaults, electricity blackouts, the enormous number of medical staff killed or displaced, and shortages of medications and medical equipment. Only 14 out of 36 hospitals are partially operational and are on the verge of collapse due to extreme overload and lack of supplies. Food supply and clean drinking water are lacking throughout Gaza, with the entire population at imminent risk of famine and dehydration.Some 1.7 million people – about 75% of the population – have been displaced. IDP shelters are overcrowded and lack basic conditions, with extreme shortages of food, water, and other necessities. Large areas in the Strip are no longer habitable. Thousands of homes have been heavily damaged or destroyed by Israeli bombardments, while critical civil infrastructure, public buildings, cultural institutions, places of worship, and heritage sites lie in ruins.The shortage in supplies and the active hostilities prevent an effective humanitarian response. Some necessary humanitarian items and medical equipment are being blocked from entry by Israel. Heavy rains, cold weather, and extreme overcrowding in tent encampments and shelters, have significantly increased the incidence of illness and disease. The distribution of what little aid is entering is significantly hindered by the lack of safe access within the Strip. Nowhere in Gaza is safe for civilians.We thus call on all parties to reach an immediate ceasefire and we call upon Israel to allow unfettered entry and delivery of humanitarian aid and goods into and throughout Gaza, as directed to do so by the International Court of Justice. Hamas must unconditionally release all people taken hostage on October 7. We call on the international community to uphold its legal obligation to restore respect for international humanitarian law and protect civilians. The international community must ensure that all those responsible for grave violations of international humanitarian and human rights law be held accountable. These steps are vital for ensuring human rights and security for Israelis and Palestinians alike.* * *Solidarity of Nations – Achvat Amim | Mothers Against Violence Israel | Amnesty International Israel | Isha L’isha Haifa Feminist Center | The School for Peace | Bimkom – Planners for Planning Rights | B’Tselem – The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories | Gisha – Legal Center for Freedom of Movement | The Association for Civil Rights Israel (ACRI) | Parents Against Child Detention | HaMoked: Center for the Defence of the Individual | Zazim – Community Action | Haqel – In Defense of Human Rights | Yesh Gvul | Yesh Din | This Is Not An Ulpan | Combatants for Peace | Machsom Watch | Looking the Occupation in the Eye | Standing Together | Social Workers for Peace and Welfare | Ir Amim | Akevot Institute for Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Research | Emek Shaveh | Negev Coexistence Forum for Civil Equality | Israeli Palestinain Bereved Families for Peace | PsychoActive – Mental Health Professionals for Human Rights | Jordan Valley Activists | New Profile – The Movement to Demilitarize Israeli Society | Policy Working Group | Rabbis for Human Rights | Physicians for Human Rights Israel | Your Neighbor As Yourself | Breaking the Silence | Peace Now | Torat Tzedek | Green Olive Collective

7 February 2024

Girl in Gaza after Israeli airstrike. Photo: Mohammed Zaanoun, Reuters, 7 Oct. 2023.

The Gaza Strip

Revenge policy in motion; Israel committing war crimes in Gaza

On Saturday, hundreds of Palestinian militants entered Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing hundreds of civilians, soldiers and police officers, burning down homes and kidnapping more than 100 people. The full extent of these horrifying crimes is slowly coming to light. The same evening, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel is at war with Gaza and will “forcefully avenge“. He promised to reduce Hamas locations to rubble and told Gazans: “Get out now. We will act everywhere and with full force.” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered all the crossings between Israel and Gaza closed and announced there would be “no electricity, no food, no fuel – everything shut down. We are fighting against human animals and are acting accordingly.” This morning, the IDF Spokesperson said “the emphasis is on damage rather than on precision.” A criminal policy of revenge is underway. Since Saturday, Israel has dropped hundreds of tons of bombs on Gaza. Netanyahu’s call for residents to leave is a farce with no bearing on reality. The Gaza Strip is closed off on all sides and the residents have no way out. There are no shelters and no way to seek cover from airstrikes. Among the people killed, some of them still trapped under debris, are entire families wiped out in a single bombardment – including at least 140 minors and 105 women. The death toll is rising by the minute. The order to prefer damage over precision has also been carried out. Hundreds of homes already lie in ruins, including residential towers reduced to rubble and houses that collapsed on top of the inhabitants. More than 180,000 people have been internally displaced. Roads and public buildings, including schools and medical clinics, have been damaged by airstrikes. Hospitals are functioning only partially – some were damaged by bombing, and all are severely lacking medical equipment and fuel for electric generators. The decision to imprison Gaza even more tightly than usual has also been implemented. The crossings are closed and goods cannot be brought in. Israel has disconnected Gaza from the power grid and the population now depends on the small local power plant, which will only hold out for several days until the diesel fuel runs out. Water is also in short supply: almost all the water extracted in Gaza requires desalination or purification to drink, and these rely on electricity. Israel has also cut back on the water it sells to Gaza, and part of the water network has been damaged by bombing. There is no justification for these actions, which constitute war crimes openly ordered by top Israeli officials. Even in the face of horror and terror – intentionally harming civilians, their property and civilian infrastructure is always prohibited. One crime does not justify another, nor does one kind of injustice justify another. Acts of revenge are prohibited by basic moral principles and by the provisions of international law that Israel is obliged to uphold. Contrary to what Israeli ministers are implying, this policy is not new, but has been implemented towards Gaza for many years. The death, destruction, pain and horror it has wrought have led to nothing but more horror. It is time to demand to a different reality – a new future for all those who live here.

10 October 2023